Despite what many would’ve assumed, the Japanese release of Baldur’s Gate 3 is less horny than other versions of the game. Japanese players of Larian’s latest RPG masterpiece have found that the game’s raunchiest moments are censored, giving eastern gamers a bad case of blue balls.
Via IGN SouthEast Asia, the Japanese launch of Baldur’s Gate 3 censors a variety of scenes to get the game past the region’s ratings board. This includes scenes of torture (understandable) and nudity/sex scenes (a travesty).
Japanese publisher Spike Chunsoft revealed that a number of changes had to be enforced in order to release the game in the region. As the game has to abide by the CERO Code of Ethics, major changes needed to take place.
Japanese players will be unable to turn on “explicit content” in the game’s options. These options include the "display of genitals, display of nudity in cutscenes and view sex scenes” options. The options are still available in the game, but they are unable to be moved from their "off" position.
Despite this, Baldur’s Gate 3 in Japan has still been given the region’s highest possible rating: Z. This means that the game is allowed to include the most graphic content the region allows, and that doesn’t include the ‘ol dance with no pants and a little bit of Goblin NPC torture.
Even games coming out of Japan have suffered major censorship at the behest of the CERO Ratings Board. Infamously, the western release of Resident Evil 7: Biohazard is far more violent and gruesome than the Japanese version of the game, despite being made by a Japanese team. Check out a video example below.
However, the removal of sex scenes in the Japanese version of Baldur’s Gate 3 still comes as a surprise. While many expected the good ‘ol pixelated wedding tackle, the outright exemption of these scenes is weird for a game that has prided itself on allowing players to get railed by a big bear.
Nevertheless, Baldur’s Gate 3 is more than just a collection of smut, even if it’s highly reviewed smut. As one of the top Steam games of all times, Larian’s RPG is an instant classic that will be remembered for generations.
Baldur’s Gate 3 is available right now on PlayStation 5 and PC. An Xbox port is currently in development to release before the end of the year.